A Southampton farmer is making no apologies for the cost of his eggs.

Tom Wadson, of Wadson’s Farm, took heat on social media last week for the price of his eggs.

He sells the extra jumbo size carton, (33oz per dozen eggs), for $13.50. He says eggs are also sold in cartons that contain 24oz, 27oz and 30oz.

“My farmer friends in the United States say I should be selling them for much more,” Mr Wadson told The Royal Gazette. “As one woman on Maj’s List said, in response to someone’s complaint about my eggs, no one is putting a gun to your head to buy them. If you want a good egg, we will provide it.”

He denied that the price of his eggs had soared, or that he was trying to gouge customers.

“I put the price up on my eggs by a dollar a dozen,” he said.

Mr Wadson changed the price tag at the beginning of the year when the cost of the chicken feed he has specially milled and imported increased by 18 per cent.

“That was on top of a 20 per cent increase in the cost of shipping containers to Bermuda,” he said.

He also needed to replace one ageing piece of egg-grading equipment that had a starting price of $17,000.

“After all my expenses, I have always paid myself about $500 a week,” Mr Wadson said. “After paying my staff, the rest goes right back into the business.”

His farm produces about 1,000 eggs a day in a variety of sizes, ranging from large to extra-jumbo sized.

“I am selling pasture-raised, non-genetically modified chickens,” he said. “I get them as close to organic as possible.”

He stopped short of calling his chickens and eggs “organic”, because there is no organic certification board in Bermuda.

Mr Wadson has seen demand skyrocket for local eggs.

“People are calling me saying ‘I need two cases right away’,” he said. “I have 43 other items that I am selling.”

Some of his eggs are reaching grocery stores within 24 hours of being laid.

“We have always been very comfortable with the level of demand,” he said. “Now, we can’t keep up.”

He said customers now want to see the face behind the product.

He theorised that this was because of the surge in avian flu in the United States, which has caused millions of chickens to be culled, resulting in egg and chicken shortages and price hikes.

With demand high, the cost of one dozen grade A eggs in the US has grown a staggering 65 per cent since the beginning of 2024, also pushing up the cost of imported eggs in Bermuda.

Wadson’s Farm eggs are not the most expensive in the store, with imported organic and pasture-raised eggs going for $16.40 in some places.

Mr Wadson said Wadson’s Farm puts much effort into its egg operation.

“We do not just have a couple of chickens scratching around in the back,” he said. “We bust our butts to produce high-quality eggs.”

He is considering expanding his flock to meet demand, but said that would involve some investment on his part.

“That would mean more houses for them,” he said. “Each of the houses that they are kept in, and moved around in, costs about $2,000.”

Mr Wadson was concerned about the possibility of avian flu reaching Bermuda through migratory birds.

Since February 2022, there have been at least 1,400 outbreaks of avian flu across America, hitting nearly 135 million birds.

According to the latest monthly Chicken and Egg report from the United States Department of Agriculture, American egg production totalled 8.86 billion in January 2025, down 4 per cent from last year. The total number of layers during the month averaged 363 million, down 4 per cent from last year.

In the same month, the average US price of a dozen eggs was a record high $4.95, according to the US Bureau of Labour Statistics, more than double the price in August 2023.

The average cost of a dozen Grade A eggs in Florida is about $6.36, and this month one location listed at $9.99.

• Correction: This article has been changed to establish Wadson’s extra jumbo egg carton includes 33oz of egg per dozen eggs